ESP32-S3-USB-OTG board
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Develop USB Host and Device applications with ESP32-S3-USB-OTG board

ESP32-S series chips like ESP32-S2 and ESP32-S3 come with a USB OTG interface, and Espressif unveiled the ESP32-S3-USB-OTG board last September in a post entitled “ESP-USB: Espressif’s Wireless Communication Solution“, where they mostly focused on USB code samples with documentation in Chinese only and provided few details about the board itself. But I browsed the company’s official Aliexpress store earlier this week, and I noticed ESP32-S3-USB-OTG board was up for sale for $35 plus shipping, with additional information now available, so let’s have a closer look. ESP32-S3-USB-OTG board specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-S3-MINI-1-N8 module with ESP32-S3 dual-core Xtensa LX7 processor with WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity, 8MB QSPI flash Storage – MicroSD card socket Display – 1.3-inch color LCD USB 1x Full-speed USB host port 1x Full-speed USB slave port 1x Micro USB port for debugging (UART console) Expansion – 14 pads with 6x GPIO, JTAG, 3.3V and GND […]

ESP32-S3-Box
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Espressif introduces ESP32-S3-BOX AI development kit for online and offline voice applications

Espressif Systems has very recently introduced the ESP32-S3-BOX AI voice devkit designed for the development of applications with offline and online voice assistants, and whose design I find similar to the M5Stack Core2 devkit, but the applications will be different. The ESP32-S3-BOX features the latest ESP32-S3 processor with WiFi and BLE connectivity, AI capabilities, as well as a 2.4-inch capacitive touchscreen display, a 2-mic microphone array, a speaker, and I/O connectors with everything housed in a plastic enclosure with a stand. ESP32-S3-BOX specifications: WiSoC – ESP32-S3 dual-core Tensilica LX7 up to 240 MHz with Wi-Fi & Bluetooth 5, AI instructions, 512KB SRAM Memory and Storage – 8MB octal PSRAM and 16MB QSPI flash Display – 2.4-inch capacitive touchscreen display with 320×240 resolution Audio – Dual microphone, speaker USB – 1x USB Type-C port for power and debugging (JTAG/serial) Expansion – 2x Pmod-compatible headers for up to 16x GPIOs Misc Power […]

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Phi Mainboard 5LC ESP32-S3 3D printer controller
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3D printer controller combines ESP32-S3 & Microchip SAME51 microcontrollers (Crowdfunding)

Here’s another ESP32 3D printer controller board with the Phi MainBoard 5LC powered by both an ESP32-S3-WROOM module and a Microchip SAME51 Cortex-M4F microcontroller, and providing Ethernet and WiFi connectivity. Designed by Likha Labs from the Philippines, Phi MainBoard 5LC is pre-loaded with RepRapFirmware firmware running the Duet Web Control interface that allows users to upload G-code files, configure settings, start jobs, control the device, and monitor prints. Besides 3D printers, the developers explain the board can also be used to drive other digital-fabrication equipment, such as CNC machines. Phi MainBoard 5LC 3D printer controller specifications: MCU Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 dual-core Xtensa LX7 WiFi and Bluetooth microcontroller @ 240 MHz with 512 KB SRAM, 8 MB SPI flash via ESP32-S3-WROOM-1-N8 module Microchip ATSAME51N19A Cortex-M4F microcontroller @ 120 MHz with 512 KB flash, 192KB SRAM Storage – MicroSD card socket Connectivity 10/100M Ethernet 802.11b/g/n 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi 4 Bluetooth 5.0 LE […]

ESP32-S3 AI ESP-DL library
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Leverage ESP32-S3 AI capabilities with the ESP-DL library

ESP32-S3 is the first Espressif wireless processor with AI instructions, and ESP-DL library for ESP-IDF allows you to easily leverage those AI instructions using boards such as the ESP32-S3-DevKitC-1. The ESP-DL library provides APIs for Neural Network (NN) Inference, Image Processing, Math Operations, and Deep Learning Models that make full use of ESP32-S3’s AI instructions with a 16-bit face recognition model running 6.25 faster, while the 8-bit model is 2.5 times faster than without acceleration. The ESP-DL library can be used as a project component. For instance, it can be used as a submodule of ESP-WHO computer vision framework, by simply copying it to the esp-who/components/ directory. The Model Zoo contains several pre-trained models for (human) face detection & recognition, and cat face detection, with more being developed including color detection and hand-pose detection. Espressif Systems also provides tools to use your own models, and a convention tool allowing you […]

Espressif ESP AFE
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Amazon Alexa certified ESP AFE leverages ESP32-S3 AI & DSP instructions

While most Amazon Alexa certified products are hardware designs, Amazon website also includes a Software Audio Front End (AFE) Dev Kits section that lists software algorithms that optimize audio detection in noisy environments, and the latest addition is Espressif’s Audio Front-End algorithms, or ESP AFE for shorts, that have recently been qualified for Amazon Alexa devices. It’s not the first Alexa certified solution from Espressif Systems, as both companies have worked together in the past with audio products like the ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO Alexa Connect Kit Module or ESP32-Vaquita-DSPG board The algorithms were created by Espressif’s AI Lab team who used the AI and DSP instructions inside ESP32-S3 processor to optimize the code. The algorithms only utilized 12 to 20% of the CPU, as well as 220 KB of internal and 240 KB of external memory, leaving extra resources for other applications running in the wireless SoC. The ESP AFE is said […]

ESP32-S3
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ESP32-S3 dual-core WiFi and Bluetooth LE 5 SoC supports AI acceleration for AIoT applications

Back in September, we reported that Espressif Systems planned to release a new ESP32-S3 with “AI instructions and multi-CPU cores” with few other details, except the chip would also be part of the MINI-series wireless modules. Now we have many more details, as the Shanghai-based company has now officially announced ESP32-S3. The processor features dual Tensilica LX7 cores, 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 & Bluetooth 5 connectivity, and as expected supports AI instructions to cater to the AIoT (AI + IoT) market. ESP32-S3 key features and specifications: CPU Dual-core Tensilica LX7 up to 240 MHz with additional vector instructions  for AI acceleration ULP core to handle low power modes Memory – 512 KB of internal SRAM Storage – Octal SPI flash and PSRAM support (supports larger, high-speed devices compared to ESP32) Connectivity 2.4 GHz 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi 4 with 40 MHz bandwidth support Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) 5.0 connectivity with long-range […]

Rockchip RK3568, RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs and SoMs in 2025
ESP32-S2-MINI modules
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Espressif Unveils ESP32-S2-MINI Modules, ESP32-S3 and ESP32-C3 SoC’s Coming Soon

Espressif Systems has unveiled two new ESP32-S2 WiFi modules part of the new MINI series modules, namely ESP32-S2-MINI-1U with IPEX antenna, and ESP32-S2-MINI-1 with a PCB antenna. The press release also mentions upcoming ESP32-S3 and ESP32-C3 processors with few details. Let’s have a look. ESP32-S2-MINI modules Preliminary specifications: SoC – Espressif ESP32-S2FH4 single-core 32-bit LX7 microcontroller @ up to 240 MHz, RISC-V ultra-low-power co-processor, 320 kB SRAM, 128kB ROM, 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 connectivity, 4MB flash Antenna ESP32-S2-MINI-1 – PCB antenna ESP32-S2-MINI-1U – IPEX antenna connector Dimensions ESP32-S2-MINI-1 – 20 x 15.4 x mm ESP32-S2-MINI-1U – 15.4 x 15.4 x mm The company states the exact processor SKU used in the module is ESP32-S2FH4, but initially I could not find out it differed from ESP32-S2 since it has the same specs include a single-core processor, ULP core, up to 43 GPIOs, and USB-OTG support. It turns out the flash appears […]

Lucky Miner SOLO-LV02
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$24 Lucky Miner SOLO-LV02 is the equivalent a lottery ticket for Bitcoin mining

Bitcoin mining now requires expensive machines, so I was surprised when I saw the Lucky Miner SOLO-LV02 cryptocurrency mining “machine” going for about $24 on AliExpress (link at the end of this post). The USB-powered box is capable of mining coins with the SHA-256 algorithm, and features a 1.9-inch display, WiFi connectivity, and two buttons. In theory, we’re told the device can mine BTC, BCH, BSV, DGB… Considering the really low hashrate, it’s the equivalent of a lottery ticket for Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies, and the luckiest ones may get one Bitcoin block (3.125 BTC). SOLO-LV02 specifications: SoC – Unnamed Hashrate – 72kH/s ±10% Algorithm SHA-256 Display – 1.9-inch color TFT display Connectivity – WiFi USB – 1x USB Type-C port for button Misc Top button for menu selection, factory reset, and configuration mode activation Bottom button for screen on/off and orientation Power Supply – 5V via USB-C port Power Consumption […]

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